After a passionate speech about how scholarships enabled him to attend law school and eventually lead the state, Gov. Bill Ritter on Thursday told higher education leaders that he’d like his scholarship proposal to be the “last dollar in” after federal grants and private help.

Though Ritter technically has little power over the scholarship program’s rules, he also pushed the state’s Higher Education Department to get to work so its details come before November.

The program, which could mean $130 million more to college financial aid a year, still needs voter approval.

The Colorado Promise Scholarship Fund should help needy and middle-income students, but these students should first seek federal grants and other money, Ritter said.

“We think it’s a plan that promotes shared responsibility,” he said.

Ritter gave his pitch Thursday at a meeting of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education.

In a crowded hearing room, supporters and a few detractors spoke out about using oil and gas money for scholarships.

Weld County Commissioner Bill Jerke said he was disappointed that money wasn’t going directly to colleges and universities.

“It’s great parental relief, but there is no more new money,” he said.

But several students say they welcome any reprieve from rising tuition costs, particularly at the state’s two large research universities.

“I pay for college myself, and I would love the help,” said Rachel Dane, a junior at the University of Colorado at Boulder. “Even if I don’t get any money, I can definitely relate.”

The Colorado Promise Scholarship Fund was the governor’s brainchild. His staffers spent months pondering how to spend an estimated $300 million that the state could raise annually if voters agree to retire a tax subsidy on the oil and natural-gas industry.

If voters say yes to the measure, 60 percent of new revenues would go to the scholarship fund. The state Department of Higher Education will decide how that program will work.

The governor chose to devote money to students — over new money to colleges and universities — because he was greatly helped by scholarships in Colorado as one of 12 kids.

Giving money to scholarships initially sparked ire among college presidents, who worry that Colorado’s 50th-in-the-nation ranking in state funding and tuition for higher education is crippling programs.

In recent weeks, however, many have come around to support the governor.

Metropolitan State College of Denver president Steve Jordan said Thursday he hopes commissioners consider allowing students who go into science and technology fields to have a lower grade-point average to participate in the program.

He also favors looking at what families will contribute — particularly if they have more than one kid in college — rather than income.

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